Kathy J. Maus is a partner with Butler Weihmuller Katz Craig LLP, having joined the firm in 1991. Julius F. "Rick" Parker III is a senior associate with the firm, having joined the firm in 2004. Ms. Maus and Mr. Parker both practice in the firm's Tallahassee office and focus their practices on first and third party extracontractual litigation defense, casualty litigation and first and third-party coverage matters. Ms. Maus serves on DRI's Insurance Law Committee Steering Committee and is a past member of DRI's Board of Directors. She is also vice-chair of DRI's upcoming Bad Faith Seminar in Washington, D.C. in June.

In today’s world of anonymous blogs, Internet message boards, and freewheeling comment sections on many websites, it has become commonplace for individuals to bandy about harsh words and vitriol with near reckless abandon.

November 05, 2012PublicationIs A Discriminatory Refusal To Rent An Invasion Of The Right Of Private Occupancy?

As the I.S.O. "Personal and Advertising Injury" coverage form ("Coverage B") has evolved over the years, one thing has remained constant: claims for wrongful eviction are covered. The modern Coverage B form covers certain enumerated "offenses," one being, "The wrongful eviction from, wrongful entry into, or invasion of the right of private occupancy of a room, dwelling or premises that a person occupies, committed by or on behalf of its owner, landlord or lessor

November 01, 2012PublicationOngoing Efforts to Preserve Our Unique Right

The problem of the vanishing jury trial is a familiar one to DRI members, for whom this loss is keenly felt. This decline in jury trials presents not only an economic threat to membership, but also a decline in fair and just adjudication.

Eric M. Zivitz is a partner at Butler in the firm's Miami, Florida office. He devotes his practice to the litigation and trial of complex cases in the areas of negligent/inadequate security, construction defect claims, wrongful death, products liability, trucking accidents, civil rights defense, premises liability, automobile negligence and employment discrimination. Mr. Zivitz has tried numerous cases to verdict throughout Florida, and has extensive experience litigating in the South Florida region over the past 20 years.

Litigation concerning benefits for business interruption is seldom an exciting spectator sport. However, Safeguard Storage Properties LLC v. Donahue Favret Contractors, Inc., an ongoing case in the civil district court in New Orleans, has the potential to put Louisiana jurisprudence at the center of the legal map.

August 01, 2007PublicationEthics: Concerns About Lawyer Competency in The Brave New World of Electronic Discovery

As one court has characterized it, "a ‘certificate of admission to the bar' is a pilot's license which authorizes its possessor to assume full control of the important affairs of others and to guide and safeguard them when, without such assistance, they would be helpless." In re Discipline of Laprath, 670 N.W.2d 41 (S.D. 2003). While the freedom suggested by that imagery might be a bit overstated, the assertion that the qualifications of a counsel assuming responsibility for a case are critical to the potential outcome is not.

The accepted definition of "nanotechnology" is "the design characterization, production and application of structures, devices and systems by controlling shape and size at nanometer scale." Nano products are literally the cutting edge of technology in a wide number of fields. One nanometer is one billionth of a meter, or for purposes of reference, one eighty thousandth of a human hair. Nanotechnology potentially allows the creation of new substances or products one atom at a time by moving and placing electrons. Current technology allows control over a single "nano," which is smaller than a cell but larger than an atom. This creates an infinite combination of uses from medicine, to electronics, to more efficient energy and pollution controls.

May 01, 2007PublicationHindsight vs. Foresight: The Adjustment of Business Income Claims

The hurricanes of 2004 and 2005 resulted in many claims for loss of business income. Applying this coverage, which is always tricky, can be even more problematic in the context of widespread devastation.

January 01, 2007PublicationPushing The Envelope: Exploring The Newest Trends In Bad Faith Exposure In Automobile Cases

In recent years, the term "bad faith" has become a term which may strike terror in the heart of defense attorneys, claims handling professionals and in-house counsel for insurers; and for good reason. An action for bad faith, whether it be "first-party" or "third-party" can and has led to "extra-contractual damages," i.e., damages which are not governed by limits of insurance or other limitations on coverage contained in the insurance contract. Allegations of bad faith attempt to re-write the rules for claims handling in the middle of the game. For this reason, bad faith exposure cannot be actuarially predicted or accurately accounted in the setting of premiums based on the risk presented. It therefore has the potential to cost insurers more than the maximum exposure traditionally presented by a particular risk under a policy with defined limits of coverage.

Over the past fifteen years, the amount of case law and commentary concerning spoliation of evidence has exploded. This attention has been positive in terms of highlighting and dealing with the loss of evidence involved in litigation. Consequently, today's litigants better appreciate the need to preserve evidence.

January 01, 2000PublicationBad Faith Findings in the Absence of Coverage

Claimants sometimes seek bad faith damages from their insurer even when there is no coverage for the loss or claim. Courts have split on the issue of whether a carrier can be held liable for bad faith when there is no coverage. Courts often analyze this issue differently for first party and third party claims. Whether a claim involves both covered and non ­covered claims also affects the analysis of this issue.

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